Related Products

Indicted financier Tim Durham has asked a federal judge to allow him to move from his sister’s home in Geist back to his own, 20,000-square-foot mansion in Fortville.

Durham has been living on home detention at his sister’s house since his April arrest on 12 felony counts.

His motion to move to his mansion was made under seal. But federal prosecutors, in an objection filed on Monday, said Durham made the motion because his sister is concerned for her safety due to threats made against Durham.

Prosecutors argued that allowing Durham to live in a house built partly with Fair Finance Co. investor money is “tantamount to letting him enjoy the fruits of his crime, as alleged by the grand jury.” The judge has not ruled on his request.

A 23-page grand jury indictment alleges that Durham and business partner James F. Cochran worked with former Fair Finance Chief Financial Officer Rick D. Snow to devise and execute a scheme to defraud investors in the Akron, Ohio-based company.

Authorities say that after Durham bought Fair in 2002, he doled out related-party loans with abandon, leaving the company unable to repay Ohio residents who purchased unsecured investment certificates boasting interest rates as high as 9.5 percent. More than 5,200 investors are owed more than $230 million.

Durham, Cochran and Snow have denied wrongdoing.

Further objecting to Durham’s latest motion, federal prosecutors argue that he should not be living in a house that is in foreclosure due to his own inability to maintain mortgage payments.

They also believe two of the three individuals living in Durham’s mansion are potential witnesses in their case against him. Durham said in his motion that one of the individuals has agreed to move out if his request is granted.

“If Durham does not want to live with his sister any longer, he should be given an opportunity to find a residence that is not implicated in the fraud and where potential witnesses do not also reside,” prosecutors wrote.

Last month, Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson denied Durham’s request to relax restrictions of his home detention. He had asked the court to modify the conditions of his release to visit his attorney’s office more frequently and to travel to California up to 12 days a month.

Olson became real estate reporter in March 2013 after spending four years as online reporter for IBJ Daily. He joined IBJ in 1999 and spent three years previously at IBJ sister publication Indiana Lawyer. Scott is an Illinois native and graduate of Western Illinois University—home of the mighty Leathernecks. He spent nearly four years at a small Illinois daily newspaper before joining The Republic in Columbus, Ind., in 1994. There, he covered the “courts and cops” beat, and reported news from nearby towns by traipsing through the hinterlands of southeastern Indiana.

In his spare time, Scott enjoys reading history books, riding bicycles, running and—most importantly—watching baseball and cheering on the Chicago White Sox. Scott also serves on the Zionsville West Middle School PTO Board. He lives in Zionsville with his wife and two daughters, along with two cats and a spoiled Chihuahua.

Multimedia

Videos

Events

IBJ’s CFO of the Year honorees are impressive financial professionals who steer the fortunes of their companies and organizations. Join IBJ to celebrate them on Dec. 1.

Nominations

Do you know an individual or organization that goes above and beyond to improve health care in the Indianapolis area? Let them know their contributions matter. Nominate them for IBJ’s 2017 Health Care Heroes Awards program. For more information or to submit a nomination, visit www.ibj.com/nominations